In these tough fiscal times, school transportation providers may need to more closely monitor employee expenditures not only for the health of their company but also for the sake of their own health.
In a recent survey by Citizens Financial Group/MasterCard, more than half of small business owners in the country (55 percent) stated that “realizing cost savings” through better management of employee expenses “would most benefit” their business.
Another key finding is that 40 percent of these business owners said they would have “greater peace of mind” if they could better manage employee spending on business-related purchases. The survey asked 400-plus owners of small businesses questions about how their employees pay for day-to-day business expenses and which payment methods or outcomes are most important to them. The top response to the latter question was “realizing cost savings.”
To address these concerns, Citizens Financial Group recently launched accessCARD Command, a new expense-management solution designed specifically for small business owners with annual revenues of less than $25 million.
“Without question, small companies that manage expenses well will be better able to weather the current recessionary storms, but there must be an easy way for them to do it,” said D. Stephen Wooters, head of commercial cards, Citizens Financial Group. “Using technology to rethink expense management — through simple, efficient tools — gives the power of large businesses to the small business owner.”
In the study, small business owners reported that they wish they “had an easier way to track and control employee expenses” so they could spend less time on overall expense management.
“With 65 percent of small business owners using either a cash reimbursement system or a petty cash system to reimburse employees for company expenses — and another 31 percent handling all expenses themselves — the conclusion is obvious: This is not the most efficient way of running a business,” Wooters said.
